This property has a documented history as a farm and agricultural operation predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup.
This Wenatchee property operated as a commercial orchard over several decades, with farming activities that included fueling farm vehicles and mixing pesticides — among them DDT and lead arsenate-based compounds — in an on-site barn. Contamination from those pesticides and from petroleum products used in orchard machinery accumulated through repeated spills during normal farming operations. Cleanup measures completed to date include demolition of the orchard and barn, grading of the grounds, and capping of contaminated areas beneath road pavement, sidewalks, driveways, and houses. That history could support an insurance cost recovery claim against carriers who issued insurance policies 40+ years ago.
Why Historical Insurance Policies May Be Accessible
Pre-1986 Commercial General Liability (CGL) policies were occurrence-based and did not contain an effective pollution exclusion in Washington. If contamination occurred while those policies were active, those historical insurance carriers may still have a legal obligation to fund the cleanup costs, even if the business closed or the property changed hands.
The contaminants identified at this property — DDT and lead arsenate-based pesticides — were banned or effectively phased out by the early 1970s, establishing that the contamination-generating operations predate 1986 by at least a decade. Occurrence-based CGL policies in effect during those orchard-operating years carried no effective pollution exclusion and were designed to cover precisely this type of gradual, accumulative release. The property owner now faces the cost of formal remediation beyond the capping already in place, and historical carriers whose policies were active during those farming decades may be obligated to fund it.
Restorical's role is to locate viable historical policies, determine whether a successful coverage claim is possible, and assist our clients and their legal counsel to obtain insurance coverage. Restorical then manages the claim, including accounting, to ensure the cleanup is funded in a timely manner.
What We Look For
- Historical insurance policies (pre-1986)
- Policy numbers, carrier names, and coverage periods
- Connection between contamination timing and policy period
- Evidence linking cleanup obligation to insured activity
What We Deliver
- Historical Coverage Chart
- Trigger Analysis & Property/Policy Nexus
- Coverage strategy with recommendations
- Insurance funding for your remediation
- Claims Management & Forensic Accounting
The Restorical Proven Process
Ready to learn more?
Contact UsThis analysis is preliminary and based on publicly available records. Restorical Research is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.
